Wallet

Buying Manchester United is a joke, but Elon Musk owns some crazy expensive things

Shaurya ThapaAugust 17, 2022 | 13:22 IST

Tesla and SpaceX CEO, Internet's richest meme-curator, and the dad with the most unconventional kid names Elon Musk might be the owner of Manchester United, as is evident from a recent tweet. However, true to his style, his later tweets point to the fact that he might just be bluffing.

Even though the American owners of the football club, the Glazers, were intent on selling the club following its poor performance in recent football leagues, it is highly unlikely that the future space coloniser would be after it. Previously, Musk had been subjected to claims such as him buying Coca-Cola to put the 'cocaine back in' (just like the old times)

Still, even though he doesn't own Coca-Cola and Manchester United (yet), the man has made some amusing high-value investments over the years. 

 

 

The companies and their subsidiaries: The vehicle-manufacturer Tesla and the spacecraft manufacturer-space launch provider SpaceX are two of Musk's most popular companies, each of them valued at $960.60 billion and $125 billion respectively.

Under Tesla, Musk also owns SolarCity, America's leading provider of solar panels. In particular, Tesla sells four products for solar energy storage and generation: Powerwall, Powerpack, Megapack and Solar Roof. As for SpaceX, Starlink falls under it. For the unacquainted, Starlink is a low-orbit satellite internet service for cut-off areas with sketchy internet services. Starlink's first satellites were launched in 2019 (and ended up angering sky-waters and astronomers later)

Connecting brains to computers: Apart from the big two, Musk's other companies include Neuralink, the concept of which would give sci-fi movies a run for their money. The Californian startup aims to connect the human brain to computer systems. 

A still from a video uploaded by Elon Musk’s Neuralink start-up showing a macaque monkey named Pager playing the video game Pong using its mind (Photo YouTube)

The concept involves the installation of a 'brain chip' inside the human skull to cure conditions like paralysis and depression. Musk himself describes it as a 'FitBit for your skull'.

Underground tunnels: Another company that Musk owns is ominously called The Boring Company. The Texas-based construction startup intends on creating underground tunnels that would considerably reduce traffic time between American cities. In fact, one of the tunnels christened 'Hyperloop', plans to allow travel at 700 miles per hour (that's 1,126 km per hour). What it means: you can travel from Delhi to Kolkata in under 1.5 hours on the Hyperloop.

The first underground tunnel inaugurated by The Boring Company (source- The Boring Company)

For some extra money, the company also sold thousands of flamethrowers in 2018!

A luxury sportscar (which he crashed): When he intended to sell his company X.com to form Paypal, Musk had a few million dollars in hand to spend and invest. This was when he bought a McLaren F1 for over $1 million back in 2000.

Mc Laren F1, the sports car that Elon Musk crashed in 2000 (photo- WikiCommons)

To impress PayPal CEO Peter Thiel, Musk took him for a drive, only to wreck the 'uninsured' car in this process! As Musk admitted in later interviews, he didn't really know how to drive the F1. 

The James Bond submarine car: The James Bond franchise has boasted some bizarre gadgets and gizmos, one of them being the submarine car from the Roger Moore-starrer The Spy Who Loved Me. Looking like an ordinary sports car, the vehicle turned into a submarine underwater with its wheels turning sideways. When a couple found the prop car in a storage unit, they bought it for a meagre $100, only for Musk to buy it from them later for a whopping $997,000. 

The James Bond submarine car was used in the movie The Spy Who Loved Me (photo- Cars Guide)

Musk states that even though he was disappointed that the car didn't actually transform into a submarine, he would upgrade it with a 'Tesla electric powertrain' to make it functional. 

A $70-80 million dollar jet: It is a cliche for billionaires to own private jets and the man behind so-called sustainable energy companies too has his own sweet ride for the skies. Musk bought a Gulfstream G650ER back in 2016, the same plane that is also owned by Jeff Bezos and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Elon Musk's Gulfstream is the same one that's owned by Jeff Bezos and Cristiano Ronaldo (photo- Business Insider)

The business jet's starting price is $66.5 million and the price can go up depending upon the modifications. Musk's Gulfstream is valued at $70-80 million according to multiple sources. 

Tesla Jordan sneakers: Another common materialistic 'flex' is getting customised sneakers. And Musk's friendship with sneakerheads and fashion bigwigs like Kanye West ensures that he too has his own custom sneakers. The LA-based brand DeMarco customised the Nike Air Jordan-1 with a red-and-black design that incorporated questionable luxury materials such as genuine python skin and lamb skin.

Elon Musk's custom Air Jordan 1 Tesla sneakers (photo- DeMarco)

Bearing both the Nike swoosh logo and the Tesla company logo, the price for Musk's original was never disclosed. But with DeMarco selling these Limited Edition sneakers for $1,500, it can be estimated that the shoes weren't as expensive as other of Musk's ventures.

A ruby and diamond ring: When you're Elon Musk, you can get a flashy ring worth $37,000 as a holiday present. Celebrity jeweller Ben Baller designed the duo-tone ring that bears the Tesla logo design and the company's name inscribed on it. 

Custom diamond and ruby ring for Elon Musk (photo- Hypebeast)

With the Twitter lawsuit still going on, we are yet to see if Elon Musk will get his full stake in the company or not. As for his other possessions, the self-proclaimed 'minimalist' might boast some unexpected possessions at times. Meanwhile, the Internet is abuzz with theories that he owns an underground Batcave or his own army of robots! (With Elon Musk, you never really know!)

Last updated: August 17, 2022 | 13:22
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